Snohomish County area sends aid to Texas hurricane victims

EVERETT — Real estate broker Dani Robinett had planned to fly to Austin, Texas, next week for an annual training conference with colleagues from across the country.

Then Hurricane Harvey hit late last month, slamming Gulf Coast communities with a year’s worth of rain in just days. At least 70 people died. More than half a million families have applied for federal housing assistance since the hurricane.

The mayhem didn’t change the Everett broker’s itinerary much. Instead of sharpening her real estate skills, Robinett is preparing to join thousands of Keller Williams employees looking to help Texans recover from storms and flooding. Her flight leaves Sunday.

“Many of us, we already had flights and hotels booked for the training event,” Robinett said. “We’ll be doing most of our work from the Austin area.”

Keller Williams will coordinate the efforts. The company cancelled the training conference, Mega Camp, and dubbed the recovery efforts taking its place Mega Relief.

Around Snohomish County, houses of worship, businesses and other groups are seeking ways to help Hurricane Harvey’s victims. That could be a prelude to more work ahead, with Hurricane Irma projected to make landfall in south Florida this weekend as a Category 4 storm with winds approaching 150 mph.

Snohomish Pie Co. on Aug. 31 donated all its sales at three locations to hurricane relief efforts in Texas. Pie sales brought in more than $11,800.

“We’re just trying to help where we can,” owner Jenny Brien said.

The money was primarily used to buy water, diapers and cleaning supplies requested by The Church TX, which is operating a distribution center to help Texans displaced by the hurricane. The Pie Co.’s donation also paid for the gas to get the two semi-trucks full of donations down to a Houston suburb.

The donation drive itself was led by The Rock Church and nonprofit Provide Hope, both of Monroe. Several other local businesses also stepped in to help.

Meanwhile, the Sikh Centre of Seattle, located in Bothell, helped with a one-day campaign to collect $4,500 for hurricane relief. Money went to United Sikhs, a Sikh-led, international nonprofit with a U.S. office in New York. The nonprofit has a temporary “base camp” for relief operations in Houston, where it is working with FEMA and National Voluntary Organizations Active in Disaster.

Narrative Coffee, on 2927 Wetmore Ave. in Everett, is hosting a latte art throw-down at 7 p.m. Saturday. Buy-in is $10, with all proceeds going to a hurricane-relief charity backed by the food and beverage industry. Learn more on the Narrative Coffee Facebook page: www.facebook.com/NarrativeCoffee.